Jay's Song
by Doodling Shadows
Summary: Jay used to live her life on the barn... That was until one night, her entire life (all two-and-a-half moons of it) was uprooted and replanted into a new setting - one where tension hangs heavily in the air, and battles, both internal and external, have become commonplace.


_A/N: I made this as an AU mini-series for my fellow forum goers to enjoy, so... have at it!_

_Summary: Jay used to live her life on the barn. That was until one night, her entire life (all two-and-a-half moons of it) was uprooted and replanted into a new setting - one where tension hangs heavily in the air, and battles, both internal and external, have become commonplace. _

_Disclaimer: I do not own Will of the Stars forum or many of the characters in the story (though all characters in this chapter__** are**__ owned by me). Those characters who appear later in-story belong to the rightful RPer's who created them unless stated otherwise, and the forum itself is owned by Coqui's Song._

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The sun hung high in the sky when Momma led us out of the Barn - the one place we had grown to know well over the first two moons of our life. Being inside grew boring though, with only the grumpy old Elders keeping us company. Even the mice-filled hay served little enjoyment after so long, so the new landscape made my heart quicken and my paws itch to run.

And that I did, diverging from the group to romp around in the grass. The yellow-green stalks reached up to my chest and tickled my paw pads, but before I could fully enjoy it and this wonderful exciting feeling in my chest, I felt Momma's teeth close around my scruff and haul me back to my siblings.

"Now, Jay, don't go running off like that," Momma scolded me lightly after she set me down. I nodded in embarrassment, shifting my gaze from her to my white paws – the only thing white on my gray fur. I caught glimpses of my brothers and sister as they crowded me, whispering to themselves. Their three pairs of paws, two gray and the other black, danced around me as they waited for Momma to give us the tour of this new world.

My brothers and sister were much different than me. First there was Raven, the first born and undoubtedly the biggest of the litter, he strutted with confidence and kept his tail held high. He wore a sleek black coat resembling night except for his tail-tip, nose, and chest, which were all white. His eyes were blue.

The other two of the litter were referred to as the Twins: Blue and Bird, who were identical in every aspect but their gender. Blue was a tom and Bird was a she-cat. Both had a similarly gray coat to mine, but that's where the similarities to me ended, because their pelts were a solid stone gray with stripes, and both had green eyes. They were always up to mischief, and you could often find them playing pranks on all the residents of the Barn, even Momma at times.

I myself, am the runt of the litter, though I was born second to Raven. My pelt, a sleek grayish blue like Momma, does not have her faint stripes like Blue and Bird do. Even Raven has a sort of stripe-like marking to his fur, if you part it the right way. My eyes are blue like Raven as well, and my legs are white, though my front leg is only so right above the paw. Momma says I look a lot like my father except for her gray pelt, but I would never know, seeing as I never met him.

Like the rest of my siblings, I turned my head towards Momma as she began to speak, only stopping to halt Blue as he tried to sneak past me. I gave him a slight push before returning my attention to Momma.

"Okay, little ones, I'll show you the farm and all the animals in it. Just promise me not to run off... and do tell me if your paws are becoming sore... Now, follow me."

With that, she lead us through the grass I had earlier trampled through in great long strides, stopping every few steps to make sure we were following right behind. She made sure we visited the 'horses' first, especially her friend May, a gray one with white hooves. When I looked at May, I noticed that she looked a lot like myself. I made a note to get to know her better in the future as we passed by.

As we made our way around the house, Momma faltered, changing our course to visit a strange creature with a brown pelt. I felt uncomfortable around such a large beast and hid behind her legs with Bird. We watched as Blue and Raven crept up to it silently, and as Blue blew their cover by stepping on its tail. All four of us froze as it turned its big brown eyes on us. Momma laughed and explained that the great creature was actually Willis, an old farm dog who wouldn't hurt a kit in his lifetime.

But none of us were exactly sure. We decided to stay by Momma's side as we rounded the house, and neither did we relax until the dog was completely out of sight.

The following days passed by without much excitement, except when we explored more of the farm, with Momma around, of course. We didn't exactly find anymore animals to meet, so she just let us map out the place in our minds. But every night we crawled into our nest with Momma after a good meal, exhausted. It almost became a routine until about half-a-moon later.

That day Momma led us to the lake – a big body of water that the elders often talked about in their tales about when they were young.

We were dead-tired after all the walking that day, so Momma had to mostly carry us one-by-one down the grassy slope until we were gathered in a group near the water's edge. There was another good reason she carried us; between the house and the water's edge, the grass became so high that it easily passed Momma's head by a few paw lengths. We might have gotten lost had we been the ones traversing it.

When all of us were gathered and she sat down next to us, she began to tell us a tale.

"When I was young, I heard this tale in many of its forms, and they ranged with each telling. This is the tale of the Clans, who once lived by this very lake a long time ago, leaving only their legacy behind. I am but a messenger, telling of how they came to be. Keep this story in mind, my little kits, for you may very well become messengers yourselves." Her tail curled around us and guided us to her warmth. She began once the stars dotted the skies and settled over us like a tapestry.

"Generations upon generations ago, farther back than any single living cat can remember, there was a place far away populated with dozens of cats. Each cat mainly fended for themselves, only co-existing in groups when needed, and easily abandoning friends as they see fit. There was no order, no harmony between them. Kits sometimes went hungry when their parents couldn't feed them, and elders would have to resign to their fate due to old age and weak bones. It was a horrible time.

"But one day a group of five cats called Lightning, Razor, Sky, Night, and Fog entered this strange new area from a home where, unlike here, there were large groups of cats who cared for each other. They were appalled at the state many cats were in, and in an attempt to help them, split and gathered cats into groups with similar traits to theirs. Lightning gathered sturdy cats with larger bodies; Razor gathered lithe, lean cats who were quick on their feet; Sky gathered cats with longer back legs and good jumping abilities; Night gathered stealthy cats who found the darkness to their forte; and Fog gathered cats who were both lean and strong, able to brave the currents of the water.

"After finding these groups, they taught them many little things, like hunting in groups, the idea of teamwork, and how to use their abilities. They taught them this in small moderation. But while some took to these new concepts, others didn't, and these cats tried to rebel against the five cats. That day, cats were killed, and the skies cried their tears of sorrow as the five surveyed the damage through sad eyes. Many of the cats were injured, and some were very serious, but none of the five knew anything about medicine.

"As the sky began to clear as the night wore on, they looked up to the moon, which hung in the sky with a silver brilliance that could rival the sun. The stars shined as well, and through them, a path began to form from the sky to the ground before their very eyes, consisting entirely of stars. On this sparkling trail, a stream of cats, pelts transparent and ridden with glowing points of light, touched down to earth. They intermingled with the dead and injured, their touches healing and soft on the wounds. But when they reached the departed, they could do nothing but touch noses to the cat. Through this contact, they extracted a silvery replica of that cat to walk among them.

"They did this to each of the dead, but on some, instead of a silvery copy, a black one emerged, radiating dark energy. To these, they spoke a sparse few words, and the black cats evaporated and disappeared. Once done healing the injured and letting the dead join their group, they headed back to the trail of stars. But a few hung behind, facing the five leaders. One cat, a lean tom who had previously resided in Razor's group, stepped forward.

" 'Some in this land wish for nothing but solitude and peace, that is true,' he said, 'but many also wish to find love and survive without the loneliness. When you first came to this land, it was boiling with tension under a layer of despair. You only served to pull back this layer, thus letting the tension overflow. But do not let this hold you back; what you did was a good thing, and these cats needed the hope you brought. Many died, but it will all go to a good cause.' He then stepped forward to Lightning, connecting their noses like the starry cats did to the deceased.

"New life flowed through Lightning, rejuvenating his battle-tired heart. In succession, eight more cats came up and did the same, flooding him with different emotions each time, filling him with memories of the past. But he wasn't the only one; each of his four friends also touched noses with them. Before long, all of them stood, stronger and wiser than before.

" 'With our powers, we have given you nine lives, but do not waste them," a strong-bodied she-cat explained. 'Each is to be used to create this new world where hunger and isolation are not needed, where no cat is excluded because of their physical capabilities, and where there is peace and order. We want this world accomplished, and we strongly believe you can do this. But there is one promise for you to keep. In this new world you create, you must remember us as your ancestors, the souls of your friends who have departed. We are to be known to the ones after we are long gone; we are to be held dear and looked to for guidance in horrible times. As for what we are known by... call us StarClan.'

"With that, StarClan departed and left the five to form their own Clans, where they became known as Lightningstar of ThunderClan, Razorstar of WindClan, Skystar of SkyClan, Nightstar of ShadowClan, and Fogstar of RiverClan. After they died, a new leader came to power over each Clan, gaining the nine lives given by StarClan, who they worshipped and looked to for clues when in great need. Though there were times of strife and war between the Clans in the time to come, they always stuck together when it counted, even traveling many miles to here when their old home was destroyed. And though SkyClan was lost in the long journey, the rest of the Clans stood strong until a few generations back, when a sickness reigned over this land.

"The few capable cats left untouched had to move in order to stay alive and regain their strength. But though they are gone from sight, they have not disappeared from our hearts, and that is why we, as messengers, must carry on their legacy and tell it to others. Maybe, if the story spreads enough, the Clans will come back to the lake and color this land again. For while we are under the same set of stars, anything is possible. All we have to do is believe."

I blinked the sleep out of my eyes a few times and opened my mouth into a large yawn. Momma held us tighter, staring into the full moon. I followed her gaze, but ultimately, my eyes closed on their own, and I was swept into the flurries of a dream.

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Carol's green eyes softened as she looked back at her sleeping kits, looking so peaceful curled up in the warm embrace of her fur. Carefully removing her tail from around them, she stood, very gently moving them so they were not disturbed. With silent pawsteps, she grabbed one of them in her jaw, hushing him with a small purr when he stirred, and hurried up the hill. Depositing the black bundle inside the fence-line, she hurried back to pick up Bird, and then Blue.

There were no clouds above, and the crickets sung their melodies as she descended the hill for the final kit. It seemed like a fine night, and that was exactly the reason she chose tonight to bring them to the Lake. She had traveled down and up the hill many times in her life on the farm, and she loved to sit underneath the starlight next to the glassy surface of the lake as it reflected it perfectly. She thought the kits would love it too.

But halfway down the hill on her way to pick up her last little kit, she heard the alarmed barking of Willis, who was staying guard by the barn. Willis didn't bark the alarm very often; it must have been an emergency. Her heart was torn between racing up the hill and grabbing Jay, but it wasn't a decision she could make on a whim. It was three kits to one she had to protect, and with a worried look down towards the lake, she turned and ran back to the barn. A mother's instincts were one to always be followed, especially for a first-time mother like herself.

It was a hard choice, but it had to be done, she told herself as she slipped past the fence and wrapped herself around Raven, Blue, and Bird. She found herself staring down the hill, and with her heart weighted down by remorse, she clenched her eyes shut and looked away.

When Willis finally stopped barking, she carried the kits inside, leaving them with her sister, a white-and-gray dapple by the name of Susie, before bolting down the hill to see if Jay was okay. What she saw halted her in her tracks, her eyes widening.

Jay was gone. Only a spot of blood and patch of gray and red fur were left where she should have laid. A fox had gotten to her.

Tail hanging low in heartbreak, she made her way back up to the barn. Jay, the kit she named after her favorite bird, was gone. With a heart even heavier than lead, she crawled through the fence and entered the barn. She didn't know how she would break it to the other kits. She just didn't know.

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_A/N: _

_Don't worry, Jay's not dead. This wouldn't be just a one-shot centered around her dying because, let's face it, that would be __**way**__ too depressing._

_Jay's actually a character I used to play on the Warrior RP forum, Will of the Stars. This is a fic about her and her life stories, so I hope you will enjoy it from beginning to end._

_Reviews are welcomed. Constructive criticism is very much appreciated._

_Happy Writing!~_

__-*Doodling Shadows~ _


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